Creating a Dickensian character

Hello Bloggers!

Today's task is the last one for our blog. I am inviting you to express your creativity and talent in stepping into Dickens' shoes, and creating a character you will add to Great Expectations.

You will have the opportunity to create your very own caricature fitting the style and fantasy of Dickens himself.

Before you embark on this, let's take a look at what caricatures are and what purposes they serve:

A caricature can refer to a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.

Caricatures can be insulting or complimentary and can serve a political purpose or be drawn solely for entertainment. Caricatures of politicians are commonly used in editorial cartoons, while caricatures of movie stars are often found in entertainment magazines.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caricature)

Dickens and the art of characterization

While lower and middle-class life in the 19th century London inspires Dickens, it does not inspire him to give a realistic portrait of it. His settings are realistic but their central figures are first and foremost the characteristics of Dicken's fantastic imagination, not at all like the reality!Dickens was fascinated by the grotesque and he transformed and distorted characters by using exageration (for example) to make his characters alive. (Adapted from Cecil - Early Victorian Novelist)

A DICKENSIAN CHARACTER:

Try to use all or most of the following in creating your character. your post should be on your blog before the end of today's class.

• A Dickensian name, with a dramatic/an unusual entrance into the story.
• Definition of the character by negation (e.g. she was not a beautiful woman)
• Reputation of character and a possible disparity between reputation and reality.
• Physical description of character, features of dress
• A characteristic mannerism that would make this character more interesting.
• The circumstances under which Pip comes across this character.
• A dialogue between Pip and your character.

Feel free to add more characteristics to make your caricature alive and interesting to us!

Since you can also add images on your posts, feel free to either draw a picture or create a caricature of your character and include it as well!

Happy Blogging
Ms Expectations :)